Restaurants are ready for one of the busiest days of the year

At Top of the Tower, 534 S. Kansas Ave., the normally members-only restaurant made reservations open to the public for Valentine's Day. The staff is serving a five-course meal and even adding a band.

The view from Top of The Tower, 534 S. Kansas Ave. The normally members-only restaurant made reservations open to the public for Valentine's Day. The staff is serving a five-course meal and even adding a band.

Valentine’s Day can take a lot of planning for couples. Trying to find the perfect gift or location for lunch or dinner can be stressful.

For restaurants, one of the busiest days of the year is trying for employees, too.

Steve Butland, owner of Paisano’s, 4043 S.W. 10th, begins planning the menu right after the new year celebrations.

“We start at 6 a.m. and don’t finish until around midnight or 1 a.m.,” Butland said of Valentine’s Day. “It is busy and stressful, but it is fun.”

Since Butland has two Paisano’s locations, one in Topeka and one in Lawrence, he has to plan two separate menus for each location.

“We always create a Valentine’s menu,” he said.

Butland said one of his staples for the Topeka location is the heart-shaped crab cakes served with roasted red pepper aioli.

He has served them every year for the past 10 years, and he said he sells out every year.

The entrees are a 12-ounce Italian seasoned prime rib and an 8-ounce grilled lemon pepper halibut. For dessert, they are serving chocolate-covered chocolate cherry cheesecake.

Each location of Paisano’s is booked between 6 to 9 p.m., but Butland said they try to keep some tables open.

“Some people only go out a few times a year, so we are really happy they chose to spend their Valentine’s Day with us,” Butland said. “I can’t even count the number of proposals on Valentine’s Day. Some people even applaud.”

At Top of the Tower, 534 S. Kansas Ave., member director Chelsea Moore agreed the process takes about a month to get ready for Valentine’s Day.

The normally members-only restaurant made reservations open to the public for this event, Moore said.

The staff is serving a five-course meal and even adding a band, The Phaders, for the ambience.

Moore said they create a new menu for every event they host.

The reservations closed Wednesday, and patrons had to choose from multiple options on the menu for their dinner.

Moore said for an appetizer, the shrimp cocktail was most popular.

A Baltimore filet with Maryland crab cakes was the most popular choice for an entree, and creme brulee with fresh raspberries was the winner for dessert.

The approximately 50 guests also will have an open bar to choose from at dinner.

Yasushi Hatasawa, owner and chef of Chez Yasu, 2701 S.W. 17th, has a Valentine’s Day menu, but he said it was made up of the most popular items sold at the restaurant.

Escargot and crab cakes are the options for appetizers, with two options for soup and salad also. The entrees and desserts have four options, including sea bass for dinner and apple tart for dessert.